Awards

On Tuesday, January 22, judges for Britain's prestigious Whitbread book awards conferred the title of Book of the Year on the sophisticated children's fantasy tale The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman (Knopf/Del Rey). The Book of the Year is selected from among the winners of five categories -- Novel, First Novel, Poetry, Biography, and Children's Book.

David Wiesner, author and illustrator of The Three Pigs (Kids' Book Sense 76 Pick, Spring '01), has been named the winner of the 2002 Randolph Caldecott Medal, and Linda Sue Park has won the 2002 John Newbery Medal for her novel A Single Shard. The awards, honoring outstanding writing and illustration in children's books published in the U.S.

The 2002 Book Sense Book of the Year Awards will recognize the books that booksellers most enjoyed handselling in the past year. Nominations for Adult Fiction, Adult Nonfiction, Children's Literature, and Illustrated Children's Book will be drawn from the Top Ten Book Sense 76 picks of 2001. Only books published in the preceding year are eligible. Lines for write-ins are provided on the nomination form.

In the January 7, 2002, issue of BTW, you'll find a ballot for the first round of voting for the 2002 Book Sense Book of the Year awards. You'll see a long list of nominees drawn from the Book Sense 76s of 2002 in the categories of Adult Fiction, Adult Nonfiction, Children's Literature, Children's Illustrated, and, for the first time, a Rediscovery Award. This new fifth award will be drawn from a mix of adult and children's backlist or recently reissued books that made the 76 in 2001.